New Mulberry Street overpass planned in Scott City

A new overpass is planned for Scott City, which would extend Mulberry Street over Main Street and over the railroad tracks to the south, ultimately connecting to Rose-Con Road.

The project was discussed at a Scott City council meeting Monday evening.

Representatives from the Missouri Department of Transportation attended the council meeting at the request of Mayor Ron Cummins.

The proposed overpass will begin at Mulberry Street, which ends at Main Street, and runs alongside the Rhodes 101 convenience store on the north side of Main Street.

Cummins said Rhodes 101 owners and management had not been informed about the project, so he asked MoDOT to join the meeting to "talk with Rhodes there at the council meeting and fill us in on any questions we might have."

The Scott City council approved the plan for an overpass in a previous meeting. The overpass will be funded through a congressional earmark of $750,000 and city funds. Eric Krapf, transportation project manager at MoDOT, said, "We were able to take that money and say, 'Whatever that overpass costs, we'll use that $750,000 of federal money to pay for it if Scott City can come up with the rest of it.'"

The initial estimate for the project was $1.1 million, leaving Scott City with a balance of $350,000.

Krapf said if the project goes over the estimated cost, the project would be put on hold until the city is able to cover the difference. He assured the city council MoDOT would do what it can to keep costs down.

This overpass is a separate project from the interchange near the Route PP crossing that involves adding ramps to an existing Route PP overpass and outer roads to connect with Interstate 55, and is being paid through different funds.

However, it also acts as a connector to the Kelso, Missouri, interchange. The overpass over Main Street would allow another route for traffic to go in and out of Scott City, rather than the I-55 exit. To the north, the overpass would send travelers to the Cape Girardeau Regional Airport exit to I-55 by way of Old Highway 61 and Nash Road. The overpass would allow southbound travelers out of Scott City access to I-55 through interchange in Kelso.

Councilman Randy Morse spoke positively of the project, noting when the Route N overpass to Illmo was constructed, it received negative feedback at first.

"People complained, but now they won't live without it," Morse said.

He praised the overpass as a way to get around blocked railroad crossings, which he believes only will increase in the future.

"I could see this as a boon for our town," Morse said.

Jim Maurer of Rhodes 101 spoke to the council, concerned the overpass would cause travelers to bypass the city. David L. Wyman, area engineer for MoDOT, said the overpass would encourage travelers to come directly through Scott City and felt I-55 was the true bypass to Scott City.

The overpass will be open for discussion at future city council meetings. Work will not begin on the project until fiscal year 2017.

"This overpass will help to tie everything together," Wyman said, "It's just another option other than local traffic always going through the Scott City interstate exit."

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